To Raise a Soul 18

“Xiao Yan!”

Qiu Feiqian suddenly stood up. After patting her husband on his shoulder, she picked up her coat and scarf and then said, “Xiao Zhen, Mom suddenly wants to sit in your seat. Move to the front with Xiao Yan.” 

“Huh? Oh, okay.”

The atmosphere was not quite right, but Yu Zhen stood up immediately. His gaze momentarily swept past Han Ya and Wu Xuan before he lightly patted Yin Yan’s thigh to indicate that the man should give way.

Yin Yan took hold of his hand but prevented him from continuing to leave his seat. Instead, Yin Yan said, “One moment.”

Qiu Feiqian looked at him with raised eyebrows.

From the seat behind them, Yin Le stood up with scrunched eyebrows; the expression he gave to Han Ya displayed clear resentment.

“Xiao Ya.”

Wu Xuan also stood up and took hold of Han Ya’s shoulder. With a sense of possessiveness and a gaze laden with superiority, he looked down at Yin Yan. Then he turned to Han Ya and coaxed, “It’s not good to block the aisle. Let’s sit down.”

Han Ya didn’t move. She stubbornly threw off his hand and stepped forward. Her eyes filled with tears, she turned to Yin Yan with a pitiful appearance and said, “Yan, I know the car accident was my fault. I’m sorry, but everyone should be responsible for their own actions, so if you want to retaliate, you should retaliate against me. My mom and dad are innocent. They have always appreciated and been grateful towards you. In the past, you…”

When Han Ya spoke those words, Qiu Feiqian almost exploded in anger.

What is this talk about retaliating against you? If we really wanted to retaliate against you, you’d already be finished!

“Han Ya, the one who will cause trouble for the Han family is me. You shouldn’t provoke me-”

“Are you cold?”

Yin Yan interrupted Qiu Feiqian’s public outburst. His words confused everyone. “Tell me if you’re cold.”

Yu Zhen, whose hand was held by Yin Yan: “???”

How can it be cold when there’s heating on the plane? What is Yin Yan doing? And…

He attempted to pull his hand back from Yin Yan’s grasp, but was not successful. Quickly, he glanced at Han Ya who was ignored by Yin Yan and at Qiu Feiqian who was obviously angry. A loud beating sounded in his heart.  

This scene doesn’t feel right. Does Yin Yan not understand the situation because he lost some of the original’s memories? Is it a former-lover-situation so he’s deliberately speaking to me and ignoring everyone else?

If it’s a memory issue, how can I help mediate? If it’s intentional, what should I do? Ignore them too?

But this woman’s cries are quite pitiful.

Yu Zhen’s hand was suddenly pinched, bringing him out of his thoughts. He moved away the subconsciously measuring gaze he was giving to Han Ya. Lowering his head, he looked at Yin Yan. He was about to ask why he’d been pinched with so much strength when he felt a heavy, sinking feeling in his heart. With a sudden change, his body felt as if it had moved from an indoor area at room temperature to a snowy land at sub-zero degrees. His body heat slipped away like a tide, and a familiar coldness spread along his limbs as his thoughts froze.

“Yin-Yin Yan…”

He returned Yin Yan’s hold with a tight grasp, clinging to the hand which, in contrast to the frigidity he was feeling, felt incomparably warm. His eyes contained a restless panic. His slowly turning mind momentarily stopped him from thinking about what was happening to him.

[The mountain god’s gift has disappeared.]

The familiar, cool voice sounded in his mind, but Yin Yan did not open his mouth to speak.

“Let’s go to the front row.”

Yin Yan stood up and gently pulled Yu Zhen into his arms. Turning to look at Han Ya who had been standing pitifully for a long time, he calmly said, “Excuse me, you’re in the way.”

Han Ya’s tears which had threatened to fall became stuck in her eyes. Her expression turned rigid for a moment, and her eyes fell on Yu Zhen, who was half leaning into Yin Yan’s embrace. With a sense of disbelief, she asked, “Yan, what did you say? You-you guys…”

“My brother asked you to get out of the way, Miss Han. Do you have a sense of civility? Is it fun to block other people’s paths?” Yin Le scolded and rolled his eyes. 

In the past, if Yin Le cussed out Han Ya, Han Ya did not even need to put on a pained act before Yin Yan would react in her defense and teach his younger brother a lesson. But on this day, Yin Yan did nothing. His gaze on Han Ya remained calm to the point of being indifferent.

“Miss Han, I believe I was very clear last time. And please don’t call me that. My family and my spouse will be unhappy.”

Yin Yan then looked at Wu Xuan and politely asked, “Can you help your girlfriend move out of the way? Many thanks.”

Yin Yan had never given Han Ya the title of “Wu Xuan’s girlfriend” before, even when there was a rumor in their circle that Han Ya and Wu Xuan were becoming closer.

But just then he had used that title so naturally.

“Spouse?”

The superiority and impatience in Wu Xuan’s eyes diminished. For the first time, he looked directly at Yin Yan and the man in Yin Yan’s arms. His eyes fell on Yin Yan’s gold ring. Reaching for the motionless Han Ya, he shifted her to one side and tentatively said, “I wish you and your spouse a long and happy life together.”

“Thank you,” Yin Yan responded politely. 

Holding Yu Zhen in his arms, he moved past Han Ya and stopped in front of Qiu Feiqian and Yin Hexiang’s seat. He called, “Mother.”

“Good boy.”

Qiu Feiqian praised and clapped him on the shoulder, then quickly gave way for the couple. When Qiu Feiqian walked past Han Ya, she paused beside her but did not look at her. Instead, she looked at Wu Xuan and held a polite smile on her face as she said, “Young Master Wu, I’ll thicken my skin today to tell you a couple of things. When you’re looking for a wife, pick someone who is steadfast and has strong moral conduct. Don’t marry someone who stirs up trouble in your moment of blindness. You’ll end up without any peace. It would be a shame to lose the good reputation the Wu family has held for generations.”

Han Ya’s face turned white. Her hurt and embarrassed eyes moved again to Yin Yan, who was now comfortably seated in the front row.

It was a pity. There was the person who used to pay attention to her and cherish her. But  the only view left for her was a distant and unfamiliar back.

Wu Xuan clenched his hands and pulled her back into his arms. He put on a polite smile and replied, “Aunt Qiu, you’re right. I’ll remember your advice.”

The Wu family and the Yin family had business dealings so they would not shed all pretense of cordiality. Qiu Feiqian didn’t say anything else. She turned and sat down comfortably, feeling an incomparable joy.

She was very satisfied with her son’s performance. Towards people like Han Ya, who would cause pain for anyone that chose to look at them, the best move was to ignore them. Moreover, she could see that Wu Xuan was different from her devoted son. He was proud and arrogant, and his inclinations were hard to pin down. It was still too soon to say whether Han Ya would eventually join the Wu family.

Yu Zhen immediately sunk into Yin Yan’s embrace after sitting down. It was not that he was unreserved, but that he was really cold. It felt like the coldness suppressed by the mountain god’s gift had been released all at once. The coldness almost made him faint.

“Eat.”

Yin Yan hugged him, then took out a brown pill and fed it to Yu Zhen.

Yu Zhen quickly opened his mouth to eat the pill. Then he lowered his head and stuffed it back into Yin Yan’s hold. Unconsciously, he rubbed his forehead against Yin Yan’s chest, as if warming up his brain which had become frozen.

“Close your eyes and slow your breathing.”

Yin Yan pressed a hand against Yu Zhen’s head, then fed himself a pill. He lowered his head and focused on Yu Zhen, observing his situation.

“Yin Yan and his spouse seem to have a good relationship,” Wu Xuan commented casually from his seat.

Although he and Yin Yan were previously love rivals, they were never enemies. Now that Yin Yan had found his other half, he had stopped pestering Han Ya. Naturally, Wu Xuan was willing to give the Yin family some face. He treated their previous matter as inconsequential as air. In the future, everyone could meet as friends. 

As the winner, he didn’t want to act out the play of trampling on his fallen opponent. It was too cheap.

“Re-really? That’s very good,” Han Ya reluctantly responded. Because she sat by the window, she could not see Yin Yan’s situation. She whispered, “After so many years, he’s finally found someone who will let him stay by their side. My guilt has somewhat lessened now… The only thing is, I don’t know when he made this decision. Before the accident, he still seemed to…”

Hearing this, Wu Xuan propped one leg over the other and leaned his elbow on the armrest. He looked at Yin Yan’s slightly exposed silhouette as it held another’s figure, and said, “Maybe it was the car accident that let him find his spouse. Don’t we all discover truths in the face of adversity? Yin Yan has suffered a lot this time.”

For a moment, Han Ya couldn’t tell whether he said this sentence casually or to make a point. Reason told her that she shouldn’t continue to talk about Yin Yan, but the unpleasant feeling in her heart still made her say, “No matter what difficult trials someone goes through, their orientation won’t change. Yan’s mother is so commanding, maybe Yan is being forced…”

“But, finally, no one will be lingering around you or making you feel miserable and embarrassed. Isn’t that good?”

Wu Xuan suddenly turned around but there was no tenderness in his eyes. Instead, there was a glimmer of impatience. He continued, “Xiao Ya, someone’s orientation may not change, but their feelings can. The most important thing in the circle is to have a good eye. Now, Yin Yan wants to wipe away his history of tangling with you. He has found a partner and gotten married, so you should go along with him and play dumb about the situation. In the future, don’t repeatedly show up around the pair of husbands and you will avoid trouble from Yin Yan’s spouse.”

Han Ya saw that this young master’s temper had flared up again and that he was starting to feel annoyed. She bit down on her lips, bowed her head, and stopped talking.

He was different from Yin Yan. Wu Xuan did like her, but it was only at the level of “like”. Even though Han Ya felt like the centre of the universe, and she could whine childishly here and there, she could not cause real trouble around Wu Xuan.

But who could she blame for making her fall in love with him? In love, the first person to love always loses.

The plane took off and headed for B City.

Mid-flight, Han Ya got up and went to the restroom, deliberately slowing her pace a little as she passed Yin Yan’s row. However, both Yin Yan and Yu Zhen paid no heed to who passed by in the aisle.

On the way back to her seat, Han Ya was cautious of angering Wu Xuan, who was eyeing her actions, so she only glanced at Yin Yan. But that one glance made her trip on her own feet and she had to catch herself.

“Hmph,” Qiu Feiqian sneered.

Wu Xuan frowned, feeling that Han Ya was too embarrassing that day.

Han Ya stood still, but seeing all the other passengers around her look over, she stiffly hurried back to her seat. Recalling the image of Yin Yan secretly leaning down to kiss the man in his arms, her fingers clutched onto her skirt.

No, someone’s orientation will not suddenly change.

Besides, it didn’t seem like Yin Yan kissed the other man. It looked like he stopped right before the other man’s face…Han Ya felt an emptiness in her heart, as if something which belonged to her had been robbed from her. It was the feeling of weightlessness when taking a step into empty air.